A court in Murshidabad’s Jangipur sentenced 13 persons to life imprisonment for the murders of 72-year-old Haragobinda Das and his 42-year-old son Chandan Das, who were lynched and hacked to death following communal violence that broke out in Jafrabad village of Samserganj in April this year.

The judgment was delivered by additional district judge Amitava Mukherjee of the Jangipur court, eight months and 12 days after the brutal killing of the father-son duo.

The violence had erupted when a mob, which had emerged from protests against the Waqf (Amendment) Act, raided Dhulian market in Samserganj, attacked Hindu pockets, and set several houses on fire.

The murders of Haragobinda and his son Chandan soon turned into a political issue, with the BJP taking it up as an example of the plight of Hindus in Bengal, alleging that members of the Hindu community were brutalised in minority-dominated areas such as Samserganj.

Following the court’s verdict, the leader of the Opposition, Suvendu Adhikari, accompanied by Haragobinda’s wife Parul Das and her daughter-in-law, said he was not happy with the verdict and sought capital punishment for all 13 convicts.

Adhikari said he would help the family move a higher court against Tuesday's judgment.

“During the investigation, family members who witnessed the brutal killings identified three persons as the prime accused. Despite that, none of them got death penalty. We have stood by the family from Day One and will move Calcutta High Court seeking capital punishment,” Adhikari said.

The Das family had identified three of those convicted — Dildar Nabab, 28, Ansarul Nabab, 27, and Enjamul Haque, 27, as the prime accused.

Adhikari also lost no opportunity to slam chief minister Mamata Banerjee for allegedly appeasing the Muslim community ahead of the 2026 Assembly elections.

“The accused have been given life sentences, which means they can eventually come out of prison and enjoy parole. This would be similar to Trinamool leader Sheikh Shahjahan enjoying mobile connectivity from jail,” he said.

He also drew parallels between the Samserganj murders and the recent mob lynching of Bangladeshi Hindu youth Dipu Chandra Das.

Parul, wife of Haragobinda and mother of Chandan, said she was not satisfied.

“The police had assured us of capital punishment. We are not satisfied with the verdict,” she said.

The remaining convicts sentenced to life imprisonment are Ziaul Haque, 45, Fekarul Sheikh aka Mohak, 25, Ajfarul Sheikh aka Bilai, 24, Manirul Sheikh aka Moni, 39, Ekbal Sheikh, 28, Nurul Islam, 23, Saba Karim, 25, Hazrat Sheikh aka Hazrat Ali, 36, Akbar Ali aka Ekbar Sheikh, 30, and Yusuf Sheikh, 49.

Special public prosecutor Bibhas Chatterjee said the state had sought death penalty, but the final decision rested with the court.

“We made every possible effort to establish this case as one of the ‘rarest of the rare’," Chatterjee said. "The police investigated the murders thoroughly and filed the chargesheet within two months."

"Based on the testimonies of 38 witnesses, we argued that this was an exceptionally rare crime. However, the judge did not agree and awarded life imprisonment. The state government will now decide whether to move high court against this verdict,” he said.

Cop on probe

Before the verdict was announced, ADG (south Bengal) Supratim Sarkar held a news meet on how the state police-led special investigation team, along with various wings of the state and Kolkata police, worked to complete the probe and file the charge-sheet within 56 days.

“Initially, the complaint named five. During the investigation, direct involvement of eight more persons was found, and the charge sheet was filed within 56 days,” Sarkar said.

According to him, all 13 were arrested from different locations like Jharsuguda in Odisha, Pakur in Jharkhand, Paikar in Birbhum, Howrah, Farakka, Murshidabad and Jangipur.

Investigators relied heavily on CCTV footage, gait pattern analysis and DNA evidence, all of which were given importance by the court in its verdict.

TMC hails police

Trinamool Congress strongly countered the BJP’s allegations.

“In BJP-ruled states, convicted rapists are released and garlanded. This is Bengal, where the police worked hard to ensure punishment through a speedy trial,” said Trinamool spokesperson Arup Chakraborty.

“This is the same Suvendu Adhikari who garlandedthose accused of attacking a puffed-rice seller in Calcutta, yet now demands the death penalty for political gain,” he added.

Dipu protest

Suvendu Adhikari announced a massive protest outside the Bangladesh deputy high commission in Calcutta on December 26 against Hindu youth Dipu Chandra Das’s murder in Mymensingh, Bangladesh.

He claimed to have sent a second letter to the deputy high commission, seeking permission to meet Bangladeshi diplomats and warned of a march if permission was denied.

The BJP leader said he had spoken to Dipu’s family and assured them of financial assistance. He added that he would urge Hindus across the world to stand in solidarity with Dipu’s family and called for road blockades in border areas to protest “atrocities against Hindus in Bangladesh” on Wednesday.